Black Rose
by CosmicEdge
Summary: A young wolf named Rosalie is forced from her pack. She is chased from America all the way to Canada, and finally finds a home. However, nothing is as it seems as her bloodthirsty former pack will stop at nothing to kill her - and her associates.
1. Preface

**Disclaimer: Alpha and Omega does not belong to me**

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She never really thought about how it would all play out – just that she could never let _it_ happen. She was different, of course and yet… she never really thought it would all come down to this.

She stared into the eyes of her former friends; their teeth bared back, their claws extended. She wasn't afraid, oh no. She could handle herself. She knew what was happening and yet… she didn't really know why this was happening.

Why had _she _been chosen for the all ridicule, all the sneers, and all the glares? Why had _she_ been chosen for all this? She knew why they hated her, of course, and yet… she didn't know why it was her standing here now.

She closed her ruby red eyes for possibly the last time before snapping them open. She wouldn't go down without a struggle. She had to stand up, if no one else would. She wanted to lay down, for it all to end and yet… she didn't want to die.

Rosalie was going to fight for her life, even though there was a good chance she would die at the claws of her friends.

She had to fight.

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**Please review!**


	2. The Black Wolf

**Disclaimer: Alpha and Omega does not belong to me.**

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_Run. I just have to run. Please, don't let my legs fail me now! _The desperate thoughts of the victim, the hunted flashed across her mind as quickly as her life did; her as a little pup, Alpha School, her first hunt, and now – this. _I can pull through._ _I _have _to pull through!_

There were big, angry gashes on her shoulder and left flank, her weak side. There were also slashed near her stomach, but it was impossible to tell with her crimson underbelly – not from blood. She had been born black with a crimson tail tip, a crimson underbelly and crimson paws. They matched her ruby red eyes, surprisingly enough. But what Rosalie gained in beauty, she _really _lacked in height. She was so tiny – her mother's side, unfortunately.

And yet, she was an amazing hunter. Catching caribou like falling leaves, her claws tearing through their throat like flower petals. Which was why it was so surprising that right now, she was not the predator. She was the prey this time.

She gasped desperately, barely able to breathe as she ran as fast as her short legs could. She looked over her right shoulder, wincing as she reopened her wounds. There they were, chasing after her still, though now farther away. Her blood streamed out behind her, caught in the wind. Even if they stopped, they could still track her scent easily. As if reading her thoughts, the hunters stopped. _I need to hide! _

Rosalie waited until her former pack mates were out of sight before slowing her run to a walk. She bowed her head. The blood covering her pelt dripped to the ground, turning the ground below her a deep, dark, mocking red. She began to lap at her pelt, wincing at the sharp taste of it. It reminded her of all the times she had to bite her tongue as to not disrespect a higher Alpha, who could've easily order her to be killed.

"Yeah, like that would've made a difference." Rosalie's voice was cracked and dry, her dehydration made worse by the blood. "Ugh - this tastes awful. Can't I just sit in the river?" Rosalie asked, forgetting that no one would answer her. She was, for the first time, truly alone.

She quickly raced over to the river and jumped in, wiggling as hard as she could in the icy, numbing water so she could get the fresh and dried blood off her pelt. When she clambered out of the river, dripping wet, the water was stained red, quickly turning pink and clear as the blood spread out. Bits of white-ish clear water droplets were splattered on her fur, obvious because of her shadowy pelt.

Rosalie quickly jogged away before breaking into a run. She wasn't sprinting as fast as she could, as she wanted to save her energy. Her head whipped back and forth, her long flowing fur twirling around as she searched for some sort of hidden shelter. Rosalie knew that in order to survive, she had to hide. She couldn't run forever. Suddenly she spotted a low den, maybe belonging to a now deceased animal. Whoever or whatever it belonged to, the scents didn't seem fresh. I_ can smell wolf, so the group must be close since there can't be any packs near here,_ she presumed. _It's probably too cold for a full blooded wolf, though the group might be used to such harsh temperatures and they might not..._

With that thought, Rosalie curled into a ball and rested her tail tip on her nose before going to sleep for the first time in a while.

oOo

Rosalie cracked open her eyes as the morning sun hit them. She stood up and stretched out her legs with a yawn. Suddenly, she stood up straight, straining to hear the sounds of her former pack members.

_I can't hear them! _She thought with a smile. _Everything… it's so peaceful. I…I can't believe it! It's like _it _never happened. _ She imagined what her life would have been like without… _this. _Her parents would have loved her, she would have been popular with the pack, maybe gotten a mate, and had pups. She pictured her future pups, with their sweet, innocent faces, and their –

Rosalie's stomach growled, obliterating her fantasy, but not her mood. She walked outside, breathing in the fresh mountain air. She kept her ears open for any sign of other life, but heard nothing. Just in case, she sniffed the air for any sign of the ones who had chased her - nothing. But she did smell one thing …

"Caribou!" she laughed out before sprinting in the direction of the fresh meat, and her soon to be lunch, judging by the sun directly over her head. She only ate small meals on her 'trip', which kept her alive but did nothing to satisfy her craving for elk, or caribou, or deer, or some sort of large game. She hadn't hunted caribou in a while, so hopefully she hadn't lost her touch.

The wolf looked down at the clearing where all the caribou grazing, hearing some things arguing and shouting. They sounded like wolves, but Rosalie didn't think wolves could live so far north. The only wolves she knew definitely couldn't. Maybe that was why they weren't chasing her now – it _was_ too cold for them.

Rosalie crouched down, wiggled her haunches and was about to jump when some caribou ran into the other caribou, causing a stampede.

"Great," muttered Rosalie. "There goes my lunch." With a sigh, she wandered away, before abruptly stopping.

_Well, a stampede's gotta end sometime, _Rosalie thought, _so why don't I hunt some food then? _With a grin at the bright idea, she began to jog with the stampede, slowly picking up speed. Rosalie stuck to the shadows of trees, bushed and rocks since she wasn't sure if she was being watched. With her dark fur, it was hard to see her unless you looked very hard and knew she was there.

Rosalie began to hum to herself, the song the same pace as her jog. It was just a random silly tune, but it still reminded her of home. Singing, especially to and with mates, was important in Rosalie's old pack. She immediately ceased humming. For a second she could almost hear her old friends telling her not to stop singing, but she knew that her friends weren't there. Besides, they weren't her friends anymore. She immediately began sprinting in the sun, shadows be damned. She raced past her old memories. She ran past everything, or so she thought.

In reality, Rosalie was just running_ away_ from everything.

Without realizing it, she slowed to a walk. Unaware of everything, a lullaby slash love – song stuck in her head.

Rosalie shook her head to try to get rid of the song.

"C'mon," she quietly growled to herself. "Focus on the hunt, already!" She shook her head one more time before looking at the ground below the small cliff. The caribou had slowed to a walk and were grazing again. Rosalie grinned before going into a crouch. She wiggled her haunches, tensing them for her spring. She waited for the perfect moment, when a caribou was at the perfect place – not quite below her, just a little farther out. Seeing the caribou, Rosalie jumped out, twisting in midair and landing directly on the back of the caribou, her claws digging into it. She quickly bit its neck, not wanting to put it in more pain than it already was from her accidental claw scratches.

It fell to the ground, lifeless, as Rosalie jumped off so she wouldn't get crushed under it. The other caribou seemed spooked, and hurried away as she landed. With a grin, Rosalie lied down and began eating. Not really paying attention to anything but her hunger, Rosalie didn't even notice all the blood staining her black fur red, and her red fur even darker red.

Soon, she was full of caribou. She stood up and sighed. It really was a shame to waste good meat, and she had only eaten half of it, not even. Rosalie decided to take as much meat as she could in her mouth so she could eat it later when she was hungry. She ripped off some meat and left the rest of the caribou lying there.

Rosalie immediately began sprinting to her shelter, thankful she remembered the way. She jumped up when she saw a tree branch, her red paws landing on it. The branch drooped slightly, and she launched herself to the top of the small cliff. It would be easier to reach the den from there.

Since she was sprinting as fast as she could, it didn't take long for Rosalie to reach her temporary home. She slowed to a walk once she was in front of the hidden shelter and ducked inside. As soon as she was inside, Rosalie dug a relatively deep hole in the ground and covered its sides and bottom with slightly dewy leaves. It was one trick she had picked up on her 'trip'. It was colder the deeper the hole went. It would preserve the meat, and the leaves would stop the meat from getting dirty or dry, because of the dew on the leaves. Once that was finished, Rosalie curled up into a ball with her tail tip on her nose as she always did.

Sleep claimed her quickly that day, since she was already tired from hunting.

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**Please review! I finished this story already - it's how many reviews I get that decides when I update!**


	3. First Impressions

**Disclaimer: Alpha and Omega does not belong to me. The song featured in this chapter is 'Tied Together with a Smile' by Taylor Swift, which also doesn't belong to me. However, I changed some lines of the song so they would make sense for a wolf to sing.**

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"Candu was jumped – by a group of Eastern Wolves." Hutch, an alpha, explained to Head Alpha Winston as Candu let out small, painful breaths.

Not wanting to seem weak, Candu just scoffed. "Ah, it ain't nothing," he insisted, ignoring the searing pain in his right flank and shoulder. However, he couldn't help but let out a small groan and flinch slightly as Eve, Winston's mate, pulled back his fur, exposing his cut to the cold air.

Eve let out a small gasp at his wounds. "Quickly," Eve ordered. "Bring him into the den." Candu limped into the den as Eve added, "Winston, honey, whoever did this, let's rip off his tail and shove it down his throat." She brushed past Winston while he looked at her with wide eyes.

Candu couldn't help but agree with Eve. Those stupid Eastern dogs had ruined Kate's first hunt, which would have fed the pack, and then _attacked _him when his back was to them. If you asked him, those mutts deserve worse than anything Eve would suggest.

"Here, we have to clean your wounds," Eve said once she got inside the den. Candu turned away.

"They're fine," he said. He would have growled, except Eve was a higher Alpha than he was, not to mention more violent.

"No, they're not." Eve replied. "If infection sets in, you won't be able to hunt, and you can't break up fights so you'd just be another mouth to feed. That is, until the infection kills you. Now, come here. We'll walk to the river."

Candu stood up, not caring about his wounds. Eve was right. If the wounds got infected, he wouldn't be able to do anything, and would just be, as Eve said, another mouth to feed. He limped over to Eve and out the den entrance. Eve walked with him until they reached the river.

"Lie down," Eve ordered. "I need to wash out the dirt from your cuts. They look deep."

Candu did as she commanded. "Yeah, I guess, but they've got worse cuts now, those filthy dogs." he replied with a small smirk. Eve didn't say anything at first, looking at the river.

"Okay, in you go."

Candu looked at Eve like she was insane. "_What?_"

"The current's strong, so it should wash out the dirt and clean your cut," Eve explained. "But it shouldn't sweep you away, either. I hope…" she added under her breath.

"What was that?" Candu asked suspiciously.

"Nothing. Now get in the river." Eve said sweetly, but with a slight threatening undertone. With a small groan at the pain in his shoulder, Candu leapt into the fast – flowing river. He had to dig his claws into the loose rocks at the bottom of the river to avoid getting swept away. He shut his jaw tight at the freezing cold water that stung his three slashes and ruffled his fur.

"Can I get out yet?" Candu asked with a small shiver after a while.

"Yes, your wounds should be clean by now," Eve answered. Candu bounded out of the river, still shivering.

Eve looked concerned. "Do your wounds still hurt?" Candu shook his head with a frown.

"Nah, everything's numb." he replied, still frowning. "Is that normal?"

Eve tilted her head. "I'm not sure. Can you walk?" she asked. Candu nodded. "Okay, then walk to the den so I can cover your wounds with webs."

Candu began walking off to the pack, calling back, "Nah, it's fine but thanks. I'll come to you if the scratches start hurting." At Eve's disbelieving look, Candu said, "I promise but I really just want to sleep right now."

Eve sighed. "Fine, but if it hurts, even if it doesn't hurt that bad, still come to me." Candu nodded before starting back to the pack – and his den – for some well needed sleep.

As soon as he reached his den, he walked in and curled into a ball before falling sound asleep.

oOo

With a yawn, Rosalie stretched out her forepaws and opened her eyes. She stood up and stretched out her back legs too, a small, content smile still on her face. The caribou had filled her up, and though she was unused to such large quantities of food, she thankfully did not get a stomach ache.

Since she had gone to sleep so early, Rosalie got up very early, too. The sun hadn't even rose yet, something she was very grateful for; Rosalie loved watching the sun rise, something she never got to do while running away from the group. She padded out of the den and just stood at the entrance, watching the sun rise and spread its warm glow over the land, making the scenery bright and sharp, no longer dark and dreary. Rosalie breathed in the fresh, cold air, her exhale turning into a white cloud though it was spring.

"Time for breakfast," she muttered to herself, walking back into her hidden shelter. Rosalie quickly uncovered the still fresh meat she had caught yesterday. There were two large chunks of food left, as she had ripped out one chunk yesterday and realized she could still fit more in her mouth. Rosalie decided to eat only one and save the other for lunch. After lunch she could go hunting, and build several more holes she could use for keeping a bunch of meat fresh.

She lied down and began digging in, getting blood smeared all over her jaw and paws. Once she was done, Rosalie decided to go on a jog to warm up, and get back the muscles she had lost from malnutrition while she was running away.

Rosalie began jogging at a slow, steady pace, but soon became bored. She decided to run a little faster, but soon was full out sprinting. She loved the feeling of the wind ruffling her fur. She loved running. It made her feel so, so… free. Like there was nothing stopping her, and nothing that _could _stop her. She was… invincible. Nothing bothered her. Nothing was everything, and everything was nothing while she ran.

Rosalie slowed to a stop, panting for breath. She breathed in and out, in and out as she tried to regain her breath, and smiled, despite the stitch in her side. Running made her forget her problems. For a second, she didn't even think about –

That.

Rosalie shook her head as though her thoughts could fall out of her ears, erasing them completely from memory. But that one image, that one mocking image, stayed.

With a growl, Rosalie decided to go back to her temporary home. She realized that she was near where she had taken down the caribou the day before. Rosalie smiled slightly. She loved running, fighting and hunting. In fact, her only good memories were of fighting or hunting, and running helped her relax.

She began sprinting to her den, getting there quickly. Rosalie had, after all, been the fastest runner in her old pack, most likely because she was the lightest. She ducked into the shelter, picking up the last piece of meat from the hole she had dug yesterday. Rosalie walked to the very back of the den before curling up and tucking in. Once her stomach was full and her white teeth were stained red, Rosalie placed her head on her paws, not really going asleep, but just resting her eyes and mind. For once, Rosalie just wanted to relax.

Before long, she was sleeping.

oOo

Rosalie woke up with a start. She could feel tears welling up in her eyes. Her dream … It felt so, so _real. _Like none of this ever happened… like she wasn't all alone.

But she was.

With a small sigh, Rosalie stood up and walked to the entrance of the den. She gasped. She could have sworn she hadn't slept for that long, but there it was – the full moon. Rosalie almost turned away, but… there was something about the moon tonight that made her stop and stare. The beauty of it was… incomparable. There was no way to describe it. It was… unbelievable. Something told Rosalie to walk out of the den and _sing_, for the first time since she had left the pack. She had always been told her singing voice was amazing, one of the reasons _it _happened, the thing that left her with multiple injuries and no pack.

Rosalie leaned back her head, and was about to sing when she heard something. It was the howl of a wolf. Rosalie got defensive, thinking someone was near her, but before long she realized how far away the howl sounded. That howl was joined by a much more feminine howl. _It's a duet_, Rosalie figured out. _That's so sweet. _She smiled before walking away, to the river where she had washed the blood off her fur. _If I can hear them, I'm sure if I sang they could hear me. Hopefully they won't be able to hear me from the river. I don't want to interrupt their song. _When a new pair began howling Rosalie added, _any of their songs. Huh… I guess some wolves can live this far north. _

With that thought, she continued on her way to the river. Once she got there, Rosalie sat down, just staring at the rippling water. The moon reflected off it. It was so beautiful. She looked up from the shimmering river, only to look up at the real moon. It was so awe-inspiring, she just _had _to sing. She _had _to. Rosalie thought back to her friend, her clumsy, sad, beautiful, insecure friend. She had written a song for her, but never got the chance to sing it. Now was as good a time as any to sing it, to sing it for her.

Rosalie took a deep breath, and then sang her heart out for her friend.

"_Seems the only one who doesn't see your beauty,_

_Is the face in the river,_

_Looking back at you._" Rosalie took a small breath, almost crying as she thought of her friend.

"_You walk around here thinking_

_You're not pretty,_

_But that's not true..._

'_Cause I know you…"_

oOo

The angelic voice echoed around the mountain, though not from anyone at the Moonlight Howl. The songs of the couples ceased as everyone stopped to listen. Usually wolves just howled. They didn't sing words, so this type of howling was foreign to them. Winston looked up in confusion from talking with his mate, Eve.

"The only person not here is Candu, I think," he whispered. "And that doesn't sound like Candu." He narrowed his eyes. "So it can only be an Eastern Wolf or a loner. Hutch," he suddenly barked. The alpha quickly ran over to him.

"Yes sir?" Hutch asked Winton, waiting for a command from the alpha.

"Take another alpha and check out who that is," Winston ordered.

"I'm coming too," a voice suddenly called out. Winston and Hutch turned around to see Candu walking towards them. "I couldn't sleep so I came over here. I heard the wolf singing, so I came over to see if you wanted me to scope it out."

Winston nodded. "If you're sure you can do this with you wounds, then you and Hutch go check it out."

"Got it, sir," Candu replied before running away from the Moonlight Howl. Without a moment's hesitation, Hutch ran over to him.

Candu and Hutch began sprinting over to where the song was coming from. The wolf, obviously a female, kept singing, making it easier for them to find her. When they were near the river where Candu cleaned his wounds, Hutch crouched down and signaled for Candu to crouch down too.

They crept forward until they got a clear view of the intruder. Candu was startled when he saw her. She didn't look anything like an Eastern Wolf. She had long, silky black fur with red paws, a red chest and underbelly, and the tip of her tail was red. The moon was reflecting off her fur, making it shimmer and shine in the moonlight. When she lowered her head from her singing at the moon, Candu had to stifle a small gasp. Her eyes were a stunning ruby red, striking against her dark fur. _I just hit my cut against a branch or something, _He thought to himself. _I must've, since I almost _gasped_._

Beside him, Hutch was focused less on her appearance and more on who she was. _She can't be an Eastern wolf, for one Eastern wolves are usually red, white or tan, though not as bright a red as she is, plus she looks like an alpha and I've never seen her before. So, is she a loner? I wonder how she got those cuts on her shoulder and side._

The black and red wolf hesitated before continuing her song, singing more softly than earlier.

"_Hold on, baby you're losing it_

_The water's high, you're jumpin' into it _

_And letting go, and no one knows..." _She held out that one note, trilling it slightly, for a couple of seconds before continuing her song at her normal volume, if not a bit louder.

"_That you cry, but you don't tell anyone_

_That you might, not be the golden one..." _She held this note out for a while to, though not as loud as the other not she held out.

_And you're tied together with a smile_

_But you're coming undone…whoa, whoa oh_

_You're tied together with a smile_

_But you're coming undone…_" She held out the word 'undone' both times for a while, longer than what either Candu and Hutch would have thought possible.

"_Oh, whoa, whoa…_

_Goodbye, baby_

_With a smile baby, baby…"_ The wolf trailed off at the end with a small, sad smile. Then she looked directly at where Candu and Hutch were hiding and said, "Hi. Why are you under there?"

Hutch crawled out and Candu followed, waiting until he had enough room to inch out, mindful of his injuries.

"I think we're the ones who should be asking the questions around here," Hutch said, voice full of authority. Candu almost rolled his eyes, but stopped himself just in time. Hutch was probably trying to sound like Winston. He kind of did, but the strange wolf seemed unaffected.

"Really? Well let's think. You watch me sing while hiding under a bush, and don't mention that you're in the audience. You know, it kind of sounds like I should be asking the questions, doesn't it?" she asked, cocking her head.

Candu tried not to laugh. The wolf was just staring at Hutch as he glowered at her. She wasn't even affected, even though she was smaller than him. _She's even smaller than _me_! _Candu realized.

"Who are you?" Hutch asked finally. "You don't seem like you're a member of the Eastern Pack, and you're definitely not part of the Western Pack. Are you a loner?"

The wolf smiled. "I'm Rosalie, and I refused to do as my alpha commanded so I got kicked out of my old pack, so yes, I guess I'm a loner." She replied, thinking, _well, it _sort of _happened like that…_

"What're you doin' here?" Candu asked. Rosalie winced.

"The head alpha kinda went berserk and ordered all the alphas to hunt me down and kill me, or bring me back to him so he could torture me to death in front of everyone." Candu and Hutch looked at her with wide eyes.

"Whoa, your head alpha was off his rocker," Candu commented.

Rosalie nodded. "Yeah, daddy was kinda crazy, but usually nice…" she said out loud absentmindedly. Candu and Hutch exchanged shocked and horrified glances. If a _father _would order that done to his _daughter…_ They couldn't even imagine what she had done.

"So," Hutch started. "What did you do?" Candu almost winced at his friend's bluntness, but managed not to. Rosalie just shook her head and smiled sadly.

"I bet you think I killed someone, right?" she asked. Candu and Hutch nodded suspiciously. "I refused to marry the person I didn't love. It was an arranged marriage," was all she said. Rosalie growled inside her head, _I can't tell them the complete truth – I can't trust them. I mean, look where trust has gotten me now._

Shaking off her thoughts and memories, Rosalie looked at the two wolves on the other side of the river. They seemed to be deep in thought. "So, what are you guys doing here?" she asked.

Hutch spoke up. "You're on our territory." He explained.

"I didn't smell any scent borders," Rosalie countered, not mentioning the face that she was more preoccupied with running away from her former pack to actually smell for scent markers.

Candu cut in the conversation. "The rivers are the scent markers, without the scent," He explained.

Rosalie put up one paw. "Wait, since there's a river right here, and we're on opposite sides of it, doesn't that mean I'm not on your territory?" she asked.

"Well, there's a river running right through our territory, this one, so we can get water and clean wounds. Candu was referring to the river you probably had to leap over to get here." Rosalie remembered that river. She had almost lost her balance; she was so tired while she was jumping over it and almost misplaced a paw.

"Oh," she said, suddenly remembering Hutch's full sentence, "So you're Candu. Who does that make you?" She asked Hutch. He looked confused.

"Didn't we tell you?" Hutch asked. Rosalie shook her head. "Okay, I'm Hutch and he's obviously Candu."

Rosalie waved with her tail. "Hey, Hutch and Candu. Do you need any more answers, or can I go to sleep?" she asked, hiding a small yawn.

"Well, you kind of have to come with us. You can sleep in an empty den, but our pack leader needs to decide what to do with you." Hutch explained.

Rosalie sighed. "Fine." she leapt over the river, landing behind Hutch and Candu, who were both in shock from the huge jump over the river and their heads. "Where's your pack?" she called over her shoulder.

With a glance at each other, they raced forward until they were leading the way. "This way," Hutch replied, looking back to Rosalie. His eyes went wide as he noticed the blood dripping down her left shoulder and flank. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine." Rosalie answered. She had more pressing matters to deal with than her re-opened wounds. She was going to meet the wolves who would decide her fate, whether she lives or dies.

Her wounds were fine. It was the rest of the night that was going to really hurt.

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**Please review!**


	4. The Pack

**Disclaimer: Alpha and Omega does not belong to me. The song featured in this chapter is 'All-American Girl' by Carrie Underwood, which also doesn't belong to me. However, I changed some lines of the song so they would make sense for a wolf to sing.**

**Thanks to Country wolf-dog for reviewing!**

** I don't know how many people re-read chapter 2, but at the end I mentioned that I finished the story. I'm not joking, it's 35 chapters and I'm sure someone will hate me at the end of chapter 9. Anyway, how often I upload will depend on how many reviews I get. I don't have a beta, so sorry for any mistakes.**

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The three wolves trudged through the trees and bushes, only two knowing where they were going. The third wolf was walking along, steeping over roots and branches, yet not really thinking about anything but her fate. Would she live… or die? She didn't even know. Ignoring the stinging, re-opened wounds on her left shoulder, left flank and underbelly, Rosalie wondered about her life.

_Did I live my life to the fullest? _She wondered. _'Cause I don't want to die if I've had a boring life._ The young wolf walked slightly behind the other two wolves, letting them lead the way to her possible doom, or possible salvation. _Maybe instead of killing me, they'd let me stay… no; no need to get my hopes up. They'll probably kill me._

"We're here." The voice of Hutch cut through Rosalie's train of thought. She looked up and walked into the camp with an expressionless face. There was no time for smiling, or crying, or pouting. This was the moment of truth. This pack would decide her fate. Hopefully they're nothing like her old pack, or else she would be killed on the spot.

_I don't think that this pack would be like that, _Rosalie thought. _Hutch and Candu seemed so nice… But then again, look where blind trust and faith have gotten me now._

She calmly walked into the camp slightly behind Hutch and Candu. Though she kept her head still, Rosalie's eyes moved from side to side, scoping out the looks and reactions of the wolves at the camp. They didn't look particularly blood-thirsty, but, of course, looks could be deceiving. Her dad practically lived by that motto, and as much as she disliked him, Rosalie had to agree with him.

_Well, if I'm going to be killed, now would be the time, _She realized as she saw an elderly grey wolf walked forward with an air of authority surrounding him. _He must be the head alpha. _With that thought, Rosalie tensed her muscles, though it wasn't noticeable unless you were waiting and watching for it, as Winston was doing.

_She seems like a fighter. _Winston thought. _And our pack needs all the fighters they can get, especially with Tony saying he'd take the valley from us if he had to. _

"Hello," Rosalie spoke cautiously.

"Hello," Winston responded. "My name is Winston. I'm the head alpha of the Western Pack here in Jasper Park. Why were you on our territory, assuming you're a loner?"

Rosalie narrowed her eyes at him. "Family reasons," was all she said.

"I still need to decide what to do with you," Winston explained. "So you'll stay in a spare den for tonight while I think of what to do with you." Rosalie nodded, but Hutch interrupted.

"Sir, there aren't any spare dens left, since all the pups grew up," he said awkwardly. Winston cocked his head as he thought.

"Okay, you'll stay in Candu's den while he stands guard," Winston said to Rosalie, who just shrugged.

"Sure, so long as he doesn't mind me possibly humming or singing. There's a song stuck in my head," she replied calmly.

"He won't," Winston said, giving Candu a 'look'. Candu sighed almost inaudibly.

"This way," he said, turning around and walking to his den, annoyed he wouldn't get to sleep that night. _Although, I have been sleeping all day, _he admitted. They stopped in front of his den. "Go in. I'm standing guard, like Winston said," Candu told her. Rosalie looked shocked.

"Why are you calling him by his name?" she asked in confusion. Candu looked taken aback.

"'Cause he said I could," he said with a small shrug. "Everyone does."

Rosalie, looking troubled, walked into his den to the very back. She curled up in a tight ball and put her tail tip on her nose, like she always did. She looked relaxed, but inside she was troubled. _This doesn't make any sense! _She thought in confusion. _Why would the head alpha allow people to call him by his first name? This is so confusing! _She wailed inside her head, before her eyes began to close of their own accord.

oOo

"Hi!" a voice woke Rosalie out of her slumbers. "Who're you?" Rosalie immediately jumped up from her relaxed position and knelt down in her hunting crouch in about two seconds. She began growling loudly in warning. Back when she was with her old pack, if she didn't do that she might've died, since it could've been a friend or it could've been an intruder sent to kill her.

"Whoa!" the voice yelped. Rosalie looked down to see three young pups with identical green eyes on the ground, cowering in fear. Rosalie stood up straight and began to walk out of the den. The sun hadn't even touched the sky yet. She looked to her left and saw Candu, fast asleep. She began poked him before waiting a second and poking him again. He was up and growling at her before she had poked him a third time.

"Your pups woke me up," she explained to him once he stopped growling. "I think I may have scared them."

Candu was about to walk into his den when he stopped. "_My _pups?" He asked in total confusion. Rosalie shrugged.

"Sorry if they're not, but I saw them in your den and assumed they were yours."

Candu snorted and walked into the den. He emerged holding the three pups in his jaw. Once he put them down, he said, obviously annoyed, "They're not mine, but they always go into my den."

"'Cause your den's the funnest!" The tan and black one piped up. Rosalie looked at the pups. Besides the tan and black one, there was also a grey and white one, and a grey, white and black one. There were two girls and a boy, she noticed once she sniffed the air. Different genders of wolves had slightly different smells, just like single wolves and mated wolves had different smells. Rosalie was lost in thought, so she didn't hear the argument that followed.

"Wait," she interrupted. "Who are you guys?"

"I'm Brady, and they're Jenna and Stephanie," The grey and white pup said, pointing first to the grey, white and black girl, and then the tan and black pup. Rosalie waved her tail in greeting.

"So, who're you?" The grey, white and black pup – Jenna – asked.

"I'm Rosalie," Rosalie replied, adding, "Hi Brady, Jenna and Stephanie."

"Hi!" the pups chorused back.

"What do you like to do?"

"Are you an Eastern Wolf?"

"Why's your fur black and red?"

Rosalie put up her tail to stop their flow of questions. "Fight, hunt and run; no; and I was born that way," she said in answer to the first three questions she had heard.

"Could you sing us a song?" Stephanie asked, her eyes shining; the pups had always loved listening to new songs, especially the lyrics. Rosalie hesitated.

"Won't I wake people up?" she asked. The three pups just smiled. When Rosalie looked at Candu, he just shrugged as if to say, 'whatever.'

"Okay," Rosalie said. She cocked her head. "I think I'll sing the first song I ever heard. I changed it a little, so I don't remember how it originally went, but, here it goes…" Rosalie took a breath before beginning to sing.

"_Since the day, they got married_

_He'd been dreaming for a little baby, boy…_

_Someone, he could take running,_

_Patrol with and be his pride and, joy…_

_He could already see him, holding his first kill_

_Standing so tall and strong_

_But when his mom came in with the cutest, little small pup,_

_All those dreams seemed wrong… _" Rosalie took a breath, not surprising seeing how many notes she had been holding out.

"_And, now, he's wrapped around her whole paw,_

_She's the center of his whole world…_

_And his heart… belongs to that sweet little_

_Beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American, Girl…_" Rosalie smiled slightly, since the song brought back happy memories. She continued the song.

"_Only_ _four, short years later,_

_She was falling for the greatest alpha, Star…_

_Before you knew it he was missin' ki-ills,_

_Skipping patrols just to spend more time with, her… _" Rosalie winced while Candu looked at her in confusion. Did that bring back bad memories or something?

"_His dad said, 'Hey son, what's your problem?_

_Tell me have you lost your mind?'_

_His partner said 'You'll lose your 'best alpha' status,_

_C'mon, you better tell her good-bye…', but," _Rosalie seemed better now, singing louder. She hadn't even noticed the heads poking out of their dens to listen to her amazing voice.

"_Now, he's wrapped around her whole paw,_

_She's the center of his whole world…_

_And his, heart… belongs to that sweet little_

_Beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American,_" Candu looked at her, relaxed by Rosalie's voice like the pups.

"_And when they got married _

_And decided to have one of their own," _Rosalie gave a small smile at this line; she obviously loved pups.

"_She said, 'Be honest, _tell_ me what you want,' and he said_

'_Honey you outta know…'_

_A sweet little, beautiful,_

_One just like you…_

_Oh, a beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American,_" She took a breath before continuing.

"_Now…, he's wrapped around her whole paw,_

_She's the center of his whole world…_

_And his, heart… belongs to that sweet little_

_Beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American, Girl…_

_All-American, Girl…_" Her voice faded away as she looked down at her paws where the pups had lied down to better listen to her voice.

Rosalie gently extracted her paw from under one of the pups - Brady.

"Oh, sorry, they're mine. Did they behave?" A motherly voice asked behind Rosalie. Rosalie turned around to see a young tan and grey she-wolf behind her.

"Yes, they were fine," Rosalie answered cautiously, narrowing her eyes as she evaluated how much of a threat the she-wolf was. _It's weird how she'd let her guard down around me, Hutch and the pups,_ Candu thought. _And yet be so suspicious and cautious around everyone else._

Rosalie looked up when she heard Winston approaching. His footsteps were different than everyone else's. They were sure, steady and somehow commanding. She stood up slowly while tensing her muscles, ready to fight or flight – most likely fight.

"Hello, Rosalie, right?" he asked, though Hutch had probably already told him the answer. Rosalie nodded slowly. "Would you like to join this pack?"

Rosalie narrowed her eyes. "Why would you want me to join your pack?" she asked suspiciously. "There has to be something in it for you." Winston nodded.

"Yes, there is – another alpha and someone who can fight. The Eastern Pack might declare war on us, and we need all the fighters we can get." Rosalie searched his face for any insincerity. When she saw none, she nodded.

"Okay, I'll join. It'll be nice to fight in a pack, anyway," Rosalie confessed.

"Okay. You must be hungry, right?" Winston asked.

"Not really, I hunted a couple of days ago."

Winston looked surprised. "So you haven't eaten for a few days, but you're not hungry?" He asked in disbelief.

"Not exactly..." Rosalie then proceeded to tell Winston about what she did to preserve the food and how she was able to save the meat by doing that. Winston thought it was a great idea, and said that if they had extra meat they'd do that.

"Have you hunted in a group before?" Winston asked Rosalie. She shook her head negative. "Okay, you'll go hunting with the morning group. You can observe how they work together as a team before you hunt in a group yourself," he told her.

"Okay," Rosalie replied. "Who's 'the morning group'?" she asked. Hutch stepped forward.

"Me, Candu and Kate," he said. "Speaking of which, where _is_ Kate?" Winston shrugged.

"I thought she was with Eve," he admitted. "If she's not, I don't know where she is." He looked at Hutch and Candu. "Would you be able to hunt without her?" They nodded. "Okay, so you'll hunt without Kate for today. Don't forget to show Rosalie how to hunt in a group."

"Got it," Candu said before he began to walk away. Hutch and Rosalie followed, both quickening their pace slightly so they weren't behind him.

"Wait," Hutch asked, sounding confused, "I thought you were in a pack before. Why have you never hunted in a group then?"

Rosalie ducked so she wouldn't get hit on her head with a low-hanging branch. "In my old pack, everyone hunted alone. That way, if everyone brought back some food, they could eat whatever they got or share it with a nursing mother or a friend who didn't catch anything, etc. Even the omegas had to hunt for themselves. That's why there aren't many omegas in my pack, actually. If you didn't get food, and someone didn't share with you, you didn't eat; simple as that." She stepped over a root. "Of course, often if a girl didn't catch any food, a male who liked her would share with her so she might want to become mates. You know, she'd see that he could provide for her and their hypothetical pups, so she'd want to be mates."

Candu looked surprised - she spoke about all of that calmly. "Wait, doesn't that mean that the omegas, you know… _starved?_" he asked in confusion.

"Well, yeah. Kinda a bad way to go if you ask me, but, you know. Some of the omegas starved, and some were killed in pack fights." Rosalie said. "In our pack, it was cowardly to allow you enemy or whoever you were fighting to live. Even if they surrendered or begged for mercy, if you let your opponent live you would be tortured to death in front of your pack." They stepped out into the sun, Candu and Hutch looking at Rosalie with their mouths hanging open. "Oh look, caribou!" she added, jogging over to the edge of the tiny cliff to look down. Candu and Hutch exchanged a glance before following her.

"Watch us," Candu whispered before him and Hutch lightly jumped to the ground below. Rosalie crouched down to hide, even though she wasn't hunting. She focused on the way they stalked forward, instead of just going for the kill. Rosalie watched as Candu tackled the caribou's long, thin legs while Hutch leapt for its throat. In a matter of seconds, the caribou was dead. Candu motioned for Rosalie to come down, so she bounded to the ground, doing a double flip. Candu rolled his eyes.

"Show off," he jokingly muttered to Hutch as Rosalie made her way over to them.

"Okay, that's all you'd need to do," Hutch explained. "D'you think you could do it?" he asked Rosalie. She just shrugged.

"'Course I can do it, but my 'loner way' seems more fun," she admitted. "You guys stalked forward. I _could _do that, but I'd probably get bored. Besides, it took some time, and you guys can only get one with that way." she added.

"Well, we're missing a person. Usually we get at _least _two_,_" Hutch explained. "Besides, what's your 'loner way'?" Rosalie grinned.

"Watch," she whispered, jumping up and rocketing up to the top of the small cliff using a branch. Candu and Hutch watched as she raced ahead, abruptly stopping. She crouched down, wiggled her haunches and leapt, twirling in midair. Rosalie landed on the neck of one caribou, snapping it. As it fell to the floor, lifeless, she jumped off it. As she passed a second caribou, her claws dug into its throat. Using the throat of the now dead caribou, she swung around and landed on the back of a third caribou in the clearing. She sunk her teeth into its neck, killing it almost instantly. She jumped off and grinned and her handwork.

"Whoa," Candu murmured as he and Hutch ran over to Rosalie. She was about thirty feet away, but it was easy to see her with her dark fur.

They slowed to a stop in front of her. Rosalie grinned at them. "I told you it was more fun," she said. Hutch nodded.

"Well, it may have been fun, but you could've died," he replied, adding, "But still, nice job." Candu nodded.

"That was cool," he agreed. "You've gotta show me that sometime!"

Rosalie laughed and answered, "Will do. But first, how are we gonna carry four caribou back to the pack?" They looked at each other, at a loss.

"Can you each carry one?" Hutch asked Rosalie and Candu. "I might be able to carry two, maybe."

"I guess," Rosalie added. "There are two young-ish ones and two ones in their prime. I guess if we piled the ones in their prime on top of each other, Candu and I could carry that together. Hutch could possibly carry the two young-ish ones."

They shrugged, and seeing no better option, Candu and Hutch did as Rosalie suggested. As they were lugging the carcasses back to the pack, Hutch grumbled, "Rosalie, next time, don't show us how you hunt. I really don't want to carry eight caribou back to our pack!"

_Our pack, _Rosalie thought._ I kinda like the sound of that._

* * *

**Please review!**_  
_


	5. East and West

**Disclaimer: Alpha and Omega does not belong to me.**

**Thanks to:**

**CandyCornWitch**

**Country wolf-dog**

**LoyalWolfHumphrey**

* * *

The pack watched in shock as Hutch, Candu and the newest member of the pack, Rosalie, dragged for caribou into the camp. They dropped the caribou in the middle of the camp and stretched out their aching muscles and jaws.

"Well, Candu, we've learned something very valuable today," Hutch started as he tried to get feeling back into his mouth. "Never, _ever_ let Rosalie show us how aloner hunts - _ever._" Hutch hissed in pain as he stretched out his slightly numb legs.

"Hey!" Rosalie exclaimed. "It's not my fault your hunting ways seem boring to me." She shrugged, seemingly unaffected by the long, aching drag. "At least Winston will be able to test out the idea I gave him for preserving prey."

"Hutch, Candu, Rosalie," Winston called out as he walked towards the just-arrived hunting party.

"Speak of the devil," Rosalie murmured.

"While you were hunting, did any of you see Kate?" He asked once he was in front of them. "She's gone missing. Eve and I can't find her."

Hutch shook his head. "Sorry, sir, but we didn't see her while we were out. Do you want us to search for her?" he asked, ignoring his aching muscles and jaw.

"Yes," was all the worried head alpha said. Winston walked away, but not before looking over his shoulder and adding, "Bye the way, nice caribou. You're obviously a good team. When Kate gets back, your team will be Candu, Hutch, Kate _and _Rosalie." Rosalie grinned. "Now go on. We'll save some caribou for you."

"Right away, sir," Hutch replied before walking off, back in the same direction of where they came.

Once they were in the forest, away from the pack, Rosalie felt the need to speak up. "Um, guys?" Candu and Hutch turned to look at her. "Who's Kate?" she asked. Candu looked confused.

"She's Winston's daughter, didn't you meet her?" he asked. Rosalie shook her head. "She's 'bout as tall as Hutch, tan fur, kinda looks like Eve, her mom."

"Who's Eve?"

Candu shook his head. "Never mind. Just, if you see a tan and white wolf, just howl."

Rosalie nodded. "Got it," she replied. They were at the cliff where they had hunted earlier that day. Suddenly she sighed. "I wish I could go hunting…" Rosalie began, only to be cut off by Hutch and Candu.

"NO!" they yelled at the same time. Rosalie huffed and pouted. Suddenly she stood straight up.

"Look!" she said with a grin. "A tan and white wolf!" Rosalie used her right paw to point to the wolf below them. _What? _Rosalie thought in confusion when Candu and Hutch began growling.

"Eastern Pack wolves," Candu hissed, jumping down with Hutch. Rosalie frowned in confusion but followed to see what was going on.

"Hey!" Candu yelled, racing towards the wolves. "This is _our _territory. You can't hunt on it!" Hutch nodded as he ran up to them, too. The three Eastern wolves growled and bared their teeth. Candu and Hutch snarled back.

"There isn't enough caribou in our territory," a red and tan female, the obvious leader of the hunting party, hissed.

"Then starve, it's not like anyone would _miss _you." Candu and Hutch turned around to see Rosalie walking over to them calmly. She stood side by side with Hutch on his left, looking amusedly at the Eastern wolves. They growled at her, but she just shrugged.

"Sorry, but I can't lie," Rosalie said with a small smirk.

"Hey, look, Candu, _it's_ even smaller than you!" one of the wolves said mockingly.

Candu was about to snarl something back, but Rosalie beat him to the punch. She narrowed her eyes at the wolf and said, "Go die in a hole, maybe without you disgusting, ugly looks scaring the caribou away, your pack would actually be able to get some food. Oh, my bad, I forgot you mutts were such terrible hunters for a second."

The Eastern wolves gaped at her for a second. They weren't used to such insults. Soon they began growling at Rosalie. She snarled right back, crouching down into fighting position.

"Bring it," she snarled. "I _dare _you."

The three Eastern wolves lunged forward; the one Rosalie had insulted, a red and white male wolf, going for Rosalie, of course, the tan and white female Rosalie had first spotted went for Candu, and the last one, a red and tan female wolf, lunging at Hutch.

Rosalie reared up as her opponent neared; she landed while smacking her paws and claws down on its head. The wolf seemed a little dazed at first, but soon shook his eyes clear of the blood obscuring his vision and lunged at Rosalie again. This time, he was able to tackle her legs and they rolled around on the ground. However, Rosalie still had some tricks left. Instead of being all tensed up and fighting, Rosalie went limp. The weight of her opponent's leap became a weight _he _had to carry, and he struggled with the sudden dead weight in his grip. Rosalie escaped from his hold and twisted around, clawing at his chest. The wolf howled in pain.

Meanwhile, the tan and white female and Candu circled each other slowly, unlike the fast – paced fight of Rosalie's. Suddenly, the female leapt at Candu. He ducked, and she landed heavily. While she was recovering from the hard landing, Candu jumped and landed square on her shoulders, his claw tips digging deep into her skin. She rolled over onto her back, trying to use her weight to crush her opponent, but Candu was too quick for her. He leapt out from under her and landed on all fours not that far away. Candu slashed her snout as she was trying to get up, causing her to whimper in fear.

Hutch and his opponent were already rolling around on the floor, snapping at each other's throats. Hutch pushed off his opponent's stomach with his claws and the pads of his back feet, knowing her wouldn't be able to win if they kept rolling around like this. He landed far away from her while she tried to regain her breath. Once she had, his opponent rushed him, snapping her jaw and flashing her claws. Hutch leapt to the side to avoid her as she came, and grabbed her tail in his teeth. He began to pull her backwards, and once her flank was in front of him, Hutch let go of her tail and slashed her side. His opponent began to whine in pain.

One by one, Rosalie, Candu and Hutch sent their opponents running with their tails between their legs.

"Take that!" Candu crowed. "Next time, don't even _think _about hunting on _our_ territory!" Rosalie and Hutch joined in, shouting their own insults at the backs of the fleeing Eastern wolves.

"That was fun," Rosalie said with a smile, panting for breath. "I haven't had a good fight in a _long _time." Hutch and Candu nodded in agreement. "Are you guys okay?" she added, looking at Candu and Hutch in concern.

"Um, Rosalie," Candu started, looking at the she-wolf, "We should be asking you that. You're covered in blood." Rosalie looked down at her blood-soaked pelt in confusion as if seeing it for the first time.

"Huh? Oh, it's mostly my opponent's blood. He didn't get that many hits in while we were fighting." Rosalie shrugged. "He wasn't that good a fighter."

"Well, one of my cuts re-opened and my left leg's bleeding, but other than that I'm pretty good," Candu replied. "What about you, Hutch?"

Hutch looked down at himself. "My left side had two cuts, but that's it. I'm fine."

"So, while we were fighting, did anyone see Kate?" Rosalie asked, remembering what they had been asked to do. Hutch and Candu sighed.

"We didn't smell or see her around here or while we were walking here. I don't know what to tell Winston." Hutch sighed.

"Tell him the truth. I'm sure she'll show up eventually," Rosalie said with a shrug.

With that, they began walking back to the pack to tell Winston that there was no news. When they got there, Winston was gathering all the alphas.

"Any luck?" Winston asked Hutch, who shook his head. Winston sighed sadly. "We're going to talk to Tony. You three," he added, "You're coming with us."

Rosalie, Hutch and Candu began walking with the other alphas to the meeting spot. When they got there, Tony and his alphas were already waiting there. Candu leapt on a rock that was near the waterfall while the other alphas just surrounded Winston and what Rosalie assumed to be Eve.

"Where did she go?" the head alpha of the Eastern pack growled – _Tony, right? _Rosalie thought.

"Maybe I should ask _you,_" Winston replied angrily. Rosalie stiffened at the implications. It reminded her too much of her old pack.

"You know that's not my style."

"My wolf Candu knows _your _style." Winston turned to look at Candu, who began growling loudly at the Eastern pack. Tony growled back.

"I just want to say one thing," The wolf that Rosalie assumed was Eve said, walking forward. "If any of you wolves have hurt my daughter," _Yeah, definitely Eve since Candu said Eve was Kate's mom. _Rosalie realized. " I will personally _rip _out your eyes, and _shove _them down your throat, so you can see my claws _tear you carcass open!_" Most of the wolves on each side backed away, excluding Winston, Rosalie and Candu. One of the wolves of the Eastern pack who was on the rock facing Candu was so scared, he fell off the rock with a whimper. _Hmm, _Rosalie thought. _I think I'm gonna like Eve…_

"Umm, mom?" a snow-white wolf asked Eve.

"Not now dear," Eve said sweetly. "Mommy's in a rage." Eve turned around to look at the other pack.

"Well," the she-wolf hesitated. "Well since Kate…, _stood up_ Garth," her tone brightened. "I can show him around until she gets back."

A wolf scoffed. "I wouldn't say _'stood up'._" The same wolf, a red and white wolf from the Eastern pack, presumably Garth, muttered sourly.

"GARTH!"

He gulped. "Sounds good to me," he said with a friendly, fearful smile.

"Well, c'mon, Garth," The white wolf said, beginning to walk away. Garth jumped over the river dividing the two packs. As he began to follow the wolf, Eve snapped at him. He hurried away with a whimper and his tail between his legs. Rosalie had to repress a smirk.

"Ah, isn't that sweet," Eve said, flipping her hair. "She gets it from me." As Eve began to walk away, Winston looked at Tony with narrowed eyes.

"I'll give her 'til her full moon," Tony warned. Winston growled as Tony began to walk away with his alphas. _What's with the implied threat? _Rosalie wondered. _And why would Tony care about Kate?_

As the Western Pack began to walk away also, Rosalie's eyes widened. _Kate 'stood up' Garth… Tony's warnings about Kate… Winston and Tony are trying to join the packs! They said the same things Dad and... _he _did when they tried to!_

_And I bet Tony will try to take the entire valley after the full moon._

* * *

**I'm gonna try something I did with one of my other stories. I'll update on Monday if I get... five reviews by then. If not, I'll update in a week. Either way I'll update, when I next update depends on you guys**

**Cya,**

**CosmicEdge**


	6. Something Different

**Disclaimer: Alpha and Omega does not belong to me**

**Sorry it took so long - wifi at my house was down:(**

**Country wolf-dog: **Thanks:) - it took me a while. I'm not that gr8 at fight scenes

**LoyalWolfHumphrey: **lol I was going to ask for ten, but the last time I did someone freaked out in a review;)

**longchaptersoscar: **Sorry for the wait - I'll try to post faster;) + rlol Eve is scary with Kate. I really don't want my eyes shoved down my throat...

**BTW it may seem like Rosalie's out of character, but try to remember that Rosalie's never known anyone who actually cared about her for no political or advantageous (?) reason**

* * *

Rosalie was in shock walking back to the camp. This was all too familiar – a young, female alpha was put in an arranged marriage, and she heroically leaves to avoid all of it, as she doesn't love the one she was betrothed to. Only, in this version, the father is sane and doesn't wish for his daughter to be killed, but still, it was similar.

Similar to her life.

Of course, it probably wasn't like this was the last straw for Kate. It wasn't like she had to watch her friends starve to death and be killed in fights. Kate was lucky.

_She's lucky she's not me. _Rosalie thought. _Even if she has to deal with marrying someone she doesn't love, she still hasn't gone through half the things I did._

With a start, Rosalie realized that they were in camp already. She watched as all of the alphas walked away, into their respective dens. Rosalie hesitated, as she didn't have a den yet.

"Um, sir?" she asked the head alpha. He turned around to look at her. "I don't really have a den. Would you like me to stand guard? I'm not that tired," she fibbed. Winston rolled his eyes.

"Rosalie, you look dead on your paws, and the fact that you fought today probably doesn't help – don't give me that look, you walk in camp covered in blood and you expect me to think you _didn't _fight? Where'd you sleep yesterday?"

Rosalie hesitated. "Well, Candu was watching guard, so I slept in his den, but I don't want to be a burden or anything…" Winston shook his head.

"I'm sure it's fine. Just go. If you don't mind, I need to go to sleep." with that, the head alpha walked away to his den, leaving Rosalie confused as to what to do. _Should I just walk in? _She wondered. _Oh, well._

Rosalie walked over to what she hoped was Candu's den. Without going in, she put her snout near the entrance and whispered, "Candu? Are you in there?"

"Wha?" A tired, groggy voice asked.

"Um, it's Rosalie. Alpha Winston told me to sleep here for tonight or until I get a den for myself…" she trailed off.

"Fine, c'mon in."

Rosalie walked into the familiar den, blinking as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Once they did, she saw Candu curled up in a ball, looking up at her. _Awww… wait where did _that _come from?_

"Um, I guess I'll sleep in the back…? That is, if you don't mind," Rosalie whispered, slightly embarrassed. She was, after all, intruding in her friend's den. She didn't want to kick him out or make him uncomfortable in his _own _den.

Candu shrugged as best he could from his position. "Sure, whatever." As Rosalie stepped around him to go to the back of the den, Candu caught a whiff of her scent - it smelled oddly floral and… relaxing. He looked out of the corner of his eye to make sure she wouldn't try to attack him. She didn't. Rosalie just curled up in a tight little ball and rested her red tail tip on her nose. Her fur would flutter every time she breathed out. She seemed asleep and unaware. Candu allowed himself a small smile at Rosalie's adorable sleeping form before he went back to sleep.

_Wait, adorable?_ Candu thought in confusion before falling asleep.

oOo

Candu woke up early in the morning to Rosalie leaving the den.

"Where're you goin'?" he whispered to Rosalie, stretching out his front legs. "So long as you're not hunting." Rosalie looked embarrassed as she recalled the events of the day before.

"No, I like getting up early in the morning to go for a jog. I need to warm up, anyway. I'm still not used to the cold weather here," she admitted. Candu stood up.

"D'you mind if I come?" he asked. "I need to clear my head." Rosalie shook her head and smiled, walking out of the den. Once she was out of camp, she began going at a light, easy pace before gradually getting faster, Candu keeping pace with her the entire time. They passed where they had hunted caribou, through the forest, passed where they had first met, the river, and circled back around.

Once they were relatively close to the camp, they slowed to a walk, both panting profusely. Rosalie grinned and said, "That was fun. I love running!" Candu shook his head in amusement.

"Yeah, I guess it kinda was. I'm not used to runnin' that fast, though."

Rosalie shrugged. "Well, there's a first time for everything!"

"True," Candu nodded. They walked into camp together.

"Hey, are we hunting today?" Rosalie asked Candu. He tilted his head.

"Nah, I don't think so. Hey, Hutch!" he yelled across the camp. "Are we hunting today?"

Hutch shuddered. "I hope not," he replied, walking towards them. "My jaw still hurts from dragging that caribou." Rosalie looked at him in annoyance. "Seriously, Rosalie, _never _hunt like a loner on the same patrol as me. _Please._" Candu barked out a laugh.

"I gotta agree with Hutch," he confessed. "That was kinda annoying."

Rosalie huffed. "Fine, but you have to admit my way would feed more wolves." Hutch and Candu nodded in agreement. "But really, are we hunting today?" Winston overheard them, and walked over.

"No, you aren't. Since there was so much extra meat, all the hunting patrols were cancelled. You can just relax all day – actually, help me, Eve and some of the other alphas look for Kate. We need to find her by the full moon," Winston ordered.

"Got it, sir," Hutch answered. He called some other alphas over, whom Rosalie didn't know, and began to hurry away with Winston and Eve.

"Um, sir, what does Kate look like?" Rosalie asked Winston.

"She has tan fur, a white chest and underbelly, and amber eyes," he replied, looking sad as he remembered his lost daughter. Rosalie, who felt guilty for reminding Winston of his missing daughter, walked away from Winston and Eve. The group of alphas reached a clearing.

"If we don't find her today, we'll look tomorrow also. The day after that is the full moon. Got it?" Winston asked.

The other alphas nodded and went in separate directions, sniffing trees, grass, everything they saw that Kate might have brushed up against or hit. Rosalie stood still, lashing her tail as she waited for Winston to give her instructions. "Since I don't know what Kate smells like, what would you like me to do, sir?" Rosalie asked. Winston tilted his head as he thought.

"You know what the Eastern Pack wolves smell like, right?" he asked Rosalie. She nodded. "See if you can smell them. They might've taken Kate."

Rosalie nodded once more before going off to do as Winston asked. She stayed away from spots she knew she would smell the Eastern Wolves, instead opting for sniffing a little farther away from the border.

Before long, it was dusk, and all the alpha's stomachs growled in hunger. There had been no trace of Kate, though. With heavy hearts, the alphas returned to camp. Rosalie ate the preserved meat she had been given, but it tasted stale and was hard to swallow. _I don't know what this Kate _looks _like, _smells _like, anything! I'm not really helping at all!_ Rosalie ripped into the meat with a fire in her eyes. _I am going to help, though! I might find something… even though I probably won't. I'll still help. For all I know, they were taken to my old home on the border of Wyoming and Idaho and I smell a human that smells like wolf and Idaho… heh, I doubt it._

Rosalie stood up and walked to Candu's den. Hutch was standing there, watching her in confusion.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Winston told me to sleep here until I get a den for myself," she responded with a shrug. "What are _you _doing here?"

Hutch replied, "I'm waiting for Candu. Winston wanted me to ask him to stand guard tonight."

"Okay, but he's over there." Rosalie pointed with her tail at Candu, who was eating his food as though he was starving. Some omegas were waiting near him, looking at the food he was eating in hunger.

"Okay, thanks." Hutch walked towards Candu. He stopped in front of him and whispered something to him. Candu nodded and stood up, leaving some unfinished chunks of meat that the omegas split up once he was gone.

Rosalie ducked into Candu's den, immediately walking towards the back. She almost stopped at where Candu was sleeping the night before, but shrugged it off and continued her trek to the back of the den. She lied down, missing Candu's presence.

_What's going on with me? _Rosalie wondered. _The whole 'Awww' thing yesterday, me missing Candu, this is so weird. I'm not used to this. It's… something different._

_Can this be love? _


	7. The Almost Fight

**Disclaimer: Alpha and Omega does not belong to me**

* * *

"Keep searching!" Hutch ordered. "We must find her before tomorrow night!" All the alphas were searching for some sign of Kate – a scent, some of her fur, anything. It was just the day after Rosalie had an idea about what was going on with her. She still wasn't sure. She'd felt hate before, but never love, so she didn't really know what love was like. She'd never even had a crush before. This whole concept of wanting to always be with someone, it was new. And strange. Very, very strange.

Rosalie noticed some of the alphas jumping over logs and sniffing trees, and wished she would have something to do. Instead of searching for Kate, she was searching for Eastern wolves. She hadn't found any scents yet, but then again, she _was _in _her _territory, not theirs. She was just happy that she could do _something._

Out of the corner of her eye, Rosalie noticed Winston and Eve walking side by side, looking back and forth. Suddenly, they went in opposite directions, Winston going right, Eve diagonally left. Rosalie watched as Eve sniffed the air, put her nose to the ground and wandered over to some tall – growing grasses. Eve walked forward, but froze, looking at the vegetation. She hurried over to the grasses and peered in.

"Winston," Eve said. The head male alpha looked over at Eve and walked to her. Eve gestured at something on the ground below her. Rosalie looked over. It was a pretty, purple flower. Rosalie didn't really understand the significance of the flower, but guessed it had something to do with Winston and Eve's daughter, Kate.

"Don't worry, Eve," Winston soothed. "She's the finest alpha I've trained."

"I'm not, Winston," Eve replied. "She's also the finest alpha _I've _ever trained."

Rosalie knew they were talking about Kate, but since she didn't want to intrude on their moment, so she walked away, sniffing for Eastern wolves as she went. Nothing. Not that she was surprised. Of course, if they were here, Rosalie would have ripped out their hearts and made them eat it. Those Eastern _dogs_ should be lucky they're not here. Rosalie was in a _really _bad mood. The fact she was confused about her emotions and angry at her 'worthlessness' didn't really help, though they were only part of her bad mood.

Rosalie searched and sniffed with the other alphas until the moon was up, only a claw scratch missing. Tomorrow night would be the night of Tony and his ambitions. The night that Rosalie could prove she wasn't worthless to the others and herself.

The night Rosalie would fight in a large group for the first time since she had left her former pack.

oOo

"Is there anywhere we haven't looked?" Candu asked Hutch, who shook his head.

"We've searched the entire perimeter," Hutch replied. "Now I just need to tell Winston that." With that, Hutch turned and walked away, presumably to tell Winston. Candu shrugged, before wandering off to his den. It was Rosalie's turn to stand guard that night. As he entered the den, he heard Rosalie breathing softly and slowly. She was curled into a tighter ball than usual, most likely to conserve body heat. Since she was so curled up, and wouldn't be able to put _just _her tail tip on her nose, her tail was curled under her snout and around her head, her fur fluttering as she breathed in and out. Her long, long eyelashes were touching low on her cheek, and for some reason, Candu just couldn't bring himself to wake her up. He padded softly out of the den, deciding to take Rosalie's shift for that night.

_Why would I do that? _Candu wondered as he stood guard, the cold air ruffling his fur. _Why didn't I just wake her up? The whole 'adorable' thing yesterday, me missing her right now, this is so... strange. I'm not used to this. It's… something different._

_Can this be love?_

oOo

Rosalie cracked open her eyes, surprised that the sun was up. She usually got up so much earlier than this time. She immediately jumped up and hurried outside, intent on finding out if she was needed for anything. She walked outside into the sun to see Winston and Eve sitting close together, talking quietly. There was still some meat left over somehow, though it had been three days since she had gone hunting, so there was no need to hunt._ Besides,_ Rosalie thought, _I don't think that I'd be able to carry back three or four caribou on my own._

Winston walked up to Rosalie, looking slightly confused. "Wait, weren't you on guard yesterday?" he asked.

"Um, no, no one told me," she responded, trying to mask her confusion, fear and anxiety. "I'll check to see who's on watch now." Winston nodded before turning away, back to his loving mate.

Walking forward, Rosalie hurried over to where she had heard wolves were supposed to stand guard from. She leapt up on the rocks, from one to another, until she reached the one that was where the wolf that was guarding the camp was. On the rock she saw Candu there, tired, with his eyes half-closed.

"Candu!" Rosalie said in surprise. "What're you doing here?"

Candu looked up at her, his eyes wider now. "I'm doin' you a favor, that's what," he responded. "Since you were asleep last night, I decided to take your shift. By the way, that's the last time something like this'll happen."

Rosalie laughed. "Well, I'll keep that in mind." Candu jumped down off his perch, Rosalie following. They began to walk back to camp together.

"Hey," Candu suddenly said. Rosalie looked at him. "Bet I can beat you to the hunting grounds." He took off.

"You're on!" Rosalie giggled. "You'll never beat me!" With that, she raced after Candu, who had a big head start.

oOo

"Are you joking? I so won!" Rosalie said to Candu as they walked back to camp.

"Yeah, only 'cause I _let _you win!" he responded. Rosalie rolled her eyes, but stopped short at the sight of all the alphas getting ready to meet Tony, with Winston at the head. Without being told to, Rosalie and Candu joined the group and began walking with them, all joking manners aside.

About halfway to the meeting place, a snow-white wolf, the one who was showing Garth around, came to a skidding stop in front of the group, panting as though she was being chased, even looking over her shoulder.

"Lilly!" Winston said in surprise. _Lilly – that was her name, _Rosalie realized. "What's wrong?"

"The Eastern wolves!" Lilly cried fearfully in response, her eyes wide. "They're coming!" Rosalie flexed her claws in anticipation of a fight, almost growling at the thought of the wolves on her pack's territory.

Winston looked at the alphas behind him. "Come on!" he growled, racing forward with the group. They tore across the land, running forward to meet Tony's group. _It's the full moon, _Rosalie realized as she raced alongside some alphas whose names she didn't know, adding, _Time for the fight._

oOo

As she stood on the rocks facing the Eastern Pack, Rosalie vaguely wondered what had happened to make it all come to this. The two packs were growling and snarling at one another, anxious and willing to fight, and yet Rosalie was calm. Not angry, or nervous, or blood-thirsty, but… relaxed. Fights always relaxed her, and she knew this one would be no different.

Tony strode forward, closer to the Western pack, just staring at Winston. "It's the full moon, Winston."

"I can see that… _Tony._"

"I didn't want it to come to this." _Yeah, right, Tony, you ambitious bastard! _Rosalie thought.

"But here we are," Winston replied, sounding as calm as Rosalie felt among blood-splattered grounds.

"Stop the insanity! Go organic!" Two she-wolves – _probably omegas, _Rosalie thought – raced in the middle of the two rival packs, on the small strip of land between the two rocky hills. Squirrels were standing on their backs, throwing acorns everywhere. There were daisy chains looped around the two wolves' necks, and an omega from the Western pack – a _male _– started clapping and cheering for them, also wearing a daisy chain around his neck.

_Idiots, _Rosalie thought in disgust, only to stifle a smirk when Tony got hit with some acorns. Some wolves started growling at the clapping male, so he soon stopped, putting his formerly clapping paws to the side of his head, cocking his head and chuckling sheepishly.

There was more growling before Tony began to speak again.

"All I ask is for you to follow our customs," Tony said angrily. "Unite the packs. But _no, _your daughter had to up and run away!"

"I didn't run away!" a voice suddenly rang out. All heads turned to see a lithe tan and white she-wolf bounding down a tall, rocky hill where she had been standing next to a grey, white and black male wolf. Everyone gasped. _Could that be…? _Rosalie wondered.

"Kate!" Winston said, shocked.

"She's back," Lilly said happily from her spot next to Eve. Winston, Eve and Lilly ran forward to meet Kate.

"We were so worried," Eve said, hugging Kate by touching necks.

"Where have you been?" Winston asked, obviously happy too.

Kate looked at her family and replied, "In Idaho." _Wait, did she just say _Idaho? _As in, my former home?! _Rosalie thought, eyes widening slightly.

"Idaho?" Winston asked, taken aback. "What were you doing in _Idaho_?"

"We were taken… by _humans,_" Kate said, "To another park"

The male wolf Rosalie had noticed walked forward. "We were… _supposed _to… repopulate."

_Ooh, bad choice of words, _Rosalie thought as Eve tackled him with a ferocious growl. She started choking him. Rosalie could just picture a sadistic look on her face.

"Mom!" Kate said in surprise. "We didn't "repopulate"! Humphrey actually helped me get home."

Eve looked up, surprised, while Humphrey, the male wolf, started gasping for breath. "Oh," Eve said slightly out of breath. She hauled Humphrey up by the scruff of his neck. "What a nice boy."

"I came back -" Kate started, only to be interrupted by Tony, who was walking forward with Garth next to him.

"You _came back _to marry Garth." Tony nudged Garth, who stood straight up and walked forward. Kate seemed frozen, but walked forward also, meeting Garth halfway.

"Yes," Kate agreed, sounding robotic. Humphrey gasped. "And unite the packs!" Kate turned around completely to face the Western pack. They all began cheering and howling, and jumped down to greet Kate except Rosalie. She jumped down, too, but had an obviously very annoyed expression on her face. Kate turned around to face the Eastern pack. They also cheered, howled and jumped down to surround the 'happy couple'. Winston and Tony nodded at once another in acceptance. Tony then left, along with Garth and the rest of his pack.

Rosalie was probably the only one there not content, surrounded by wolves that were all jumping up and down.

The truth was, Rosalie preferred war and fights to peace and happiness.

It's why and how she became an alpha.

And the best fighter in her blood-thirsty, murdering former pack.

* * *

**Long rambly author's note (not really...):**

**Wow! My computer has been fixed, finally! It took me a while to write this, because when I did, I was in a hotel - no WiFi, no Netflix. Of course, I COULD HAVE used the Netflix app for iPhone 4s, but _noooo, _it'd been deleted. SO fun-_- After I got home, I edited this, so sorry if it's kind of choppy. Oh, and here you go, anonymous reviewer **lil sis**. Probably the only reasons anonymous reviews annoy me is because I love going to my reviewers pages and reading their stories. IDK, habit. **

**Anyway, I had to Google the script for this scene, and as such, I had to guess who was saying what. If I made any mistakes, PM me or tell me in a review hint, hint;) **

**If that was to subtle, REVIEW PLEASE;)**

**'Til next time!**


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